Seven
by ThePerksOfBeingAHarryPotterFan
Summary: One Girl. Two Guys. Three Friends. Four Houses. Five Secrets. Six Family Members. This is Seven. (OC/OC)
1. Chapter One

**Seven ~ Chapter One ~ One Mum, Two Brothers, Three Sisters, Four Rooms, Five Sounds, Six Smells, Seven Worries**

_And as the wand stared her in the face, she was suddenly terrified of the eyes that once comforted her._

'_Why?' she whispered._

'_You know why.'_

I could always count on the first smell of the day to be the smell of my tabby cat, Slinky's, butt right on my face. The second smell came from the lavender smell that was my sister's wafting into our bedroom from the attached bathroom. Every morning I would wake up with Slinky sleeping on my head and the sound of water running as smoke slithered through the cracks under the slightly ajar bathroom door.

On this particular morning, Summer came out of the bathroom, walking small quick steps, one towel around her head and one around her body. Her face broke out in a large grin when she saw I was awake. Even though I was just eleven and she was seventeen, we were the closest of all our siblings.

After putting on a tank top and shorts fitting of the hot weather that summer (excuse the pun), she made her way back into the bathroom, this time to fix her hair and do her makeup. Finally pushing Slinky off me, much to her displeasure, I got out of bed and followed her into the bathroom.

'How'd you sleep little sis?' she asked when I stood next to her at the mirror.

'Good. You?'

'Great,' Summer smiled reassuringly, but I knew she was lying; we shared a bed and I could feel and hear her tossing and turning all night. This happened almost every night.

As I watched my sister apply the makeup, I thought about how she really didn't need it. Summer was already beautiful with her shoulder-length auburn hair, big blue eyes and pretty features. The only thing that ruined the perfect façade was the red lines raised along her arms. At eleven years old, I didn't know what they were or how they'd gotten there. I just had faint memories of nights without Summer in our bed and in a hospital one instead and the knowledge that the many beaded bracelets I had made her made them stop hurting.

After she finished with her own hair, she turned to me and braided mine. She then applied some lip gloss to my small lips and sprayed me with some perfume she bought for me before she left the room to let me get dressed.

I worried about my sister.

Slinky followed me down the hall and hissed as my two brothers, August and Germany bolted past me. Slinky had never liked my brothers; it took me a good six months to teach her not to attack them every time she saw them.

Really, Slinky was a nuisance for everyone in the family. But with my great love for cats and my innocent seven-year-old eyes, how could Mum refuse to let me take in the beaten, skinny, almost hairless kitten?

August was sixteen. He was what most girls described as tall, dark and handsome. He had dark brown eyes and dark brown hair that was swept back and reached just below his ears. My mother always said he had a much "defined" face with "high cheekbones" that made him look "regal".

Germany was twelve and had similar dark brown hair to August, although Germany's was curly and sat flat on top of his head. His blue eyes were the same as Summer's, who were the only two to inherit them from our mother.

Walking into the kitchen and dining room, the third smell I can always expect hits me: breakfast. Then the fourth smell barrels into me: The sweet citrusy smell of my mother.

'Seven!' she screeched and hugged me as if she hadn't seen me in years. She did this almost every morning. 'And Summer, my beautiful daughter!' She let go of me and went to squeeze the life out of Summer. 'Sit down girls, before the others eat everything.'

Mum was completely right in saying this; mine was a family full of big eaters that ate anything and everything. I was the only one that hardly ate anything, which was probably a good thing because retrieving food at any meal was a struggle. Across from me sat my fifteen year old sister Indigo. She had tied up her long light brown hair today, but when she left it out it reached just above her bottom. She had hazel eyes and could do with losing a little weight. Mum was always trying to convince her to go on a diet with her, but every time she suggested this, Indigo said she loved food way too much to go on a diet.

I worried about Indigo. I worried about everyone in this family.

Speaking of Indie's love of food, she and Wednesday were fighting over the last strip of bacon, which made me really hope Mum was making more because I loved bacon. Wednesday was fourteen and had blonde hair and green eyes. She was very beautiful, like Summer was, but Wednesday had always hated the several freckles that decorated her face.

Wednesday, Germany and I got the worst end of the deal when it came to names, my name being Seven. And before you ask, just like the rest of the world does, yes like the number. My mum was a little crazy, to say the least, and wanted to give us unique names. She named one of us after a season (Summer), one of us after a month (August), one of us after a colour (Indigo), a day of the week (Wednesday), a country (Germany) and a number (Seven).

My hair was naturally light brown with dirty blonde streaks running through it, mostly underneath and at the tips. My eyes were brown and everything about me screamed shy and small. I was officially the shortest girl in my year at school and I knew that because one lunch time the whole year gathered around to find out who was the shortest and who was the tallest.

My brothers, my sisters and I looked nothing alike and the only ones you would peg to be my mother's children are Summer, Germany and Wednesday. The rest of us looked like what we imagined our father to look like, although Mum always said August looked like her brother.

Summer explained to me when I was around eight that we once had a father but he died just months after I was born. Even she and August only had very few memories of him and the rest of us didn't remember him at all. Mum didn't like to talk about him for some weird reason and I had never dared to ask her again after asking her once. Only bad things came from that question.

The only thing I had of his was his last name, McCarthy. Mum kept his last name too and still wore her wedding ring, but other than those two things, it was like he never existed.

I worried about my mother. Summer always said she kept too much bottled up inside.

Just as Mum was putting some bacon on my plate (she ended up making some especially for me), Germany started up the game we played every morning at breakfast. Somebody started the game by telling the rest of us about a dream they had had the previous night. The winner (which everyone voted on) got to pick either a game we played that day or what we would have for dinner that night. None of us ever made up a dream either, even if we wanted to; every single one of us was horrible at lying. Admittedly, it wasn't much of a game, but we all enjoyed it and it was something that kept the bickering at a minimum.

Germany was the winner this morning with his dream about a room full of green goo that you got stuck to every time you made contact with it which made it extremely difficult to defeat the dragon he was battling with. He eventually did though.

We would probably end up playing Jenga, Uno, Snakes and Ladders or some game like that. Germany loved those games and he was good at them.

After breakfast, mum left for work and the rest of us sat in the living room to play the predicted game of Uno.

According to Mum, she did have a proper job, but Summer and August always said that selling paintings on the street and having no real or reliable income did not class as a proper job. She usually left after breakfast and got back in time to make dinner, so it wasn't like she completely abandoned us. Plus, it was kind of fun to just spend time with my brothers and sisters during the day even if we did fight almost every day.

But there were downfalls to having no mum around during the day, especially when it came to how little she was making for not being at home. The main downfall was that our house was tiny. The kitchen, dining and lounge room was all just one room and there were only four bedrooms. Summer and I had scored the biggest bedroom after winning a game after beating Wednesday and Indigo at a game of rugby. Wednesday and Indigo also shared a room, as did August and Germany. Mum got the last one to herself. This was admittedly better to what some families lived in, but it still wasn't ideal.

After Uno, which Germany won, the others stayed inside to play some other card game that Germany and I found too hard to play, so we went outside.

Our yard was fairly big, bigger than the house, and it was all carefully cared for grass and garden. It always smelt absolutely wonderful. Gardening was a passion both Wednesday and our mother shared.

Out of my two brothers, I was closer to Germany than I was to August. Most of it was probably due to the age difference, but a lot of it was also because of our shared interests. For as long as I could remember, the two of us had bonded over our love for the world of fantasy. We both read similar books about it and always talked about dragons and wizards and witches and all those magical things that everyone else insisted didn't exist. When we were younger, we used to come outside and pretend to duel with sticks or pretend to slay dragons. We didn't do that anymore though because Germany reckons he's too old for that sort of stuff. But I didn't see how that could be true; you're never too old to pretend.

Today we laid in the grass and made up stories based on the shapes of the clouds. We were great at making up stories. We used to put together epic tales of adventure and romance and perform them for the rest of the family but then August and Indigo decided to be jerks and began making fun of us. Needless to say, we didn't do it anymore. He then told me more about the dream he had the previous night and I told him about the book I was reading, _Dragonflight_. It was the first book in a series and I was quite enjoying it.

'Oi, Summer?' Germany said when all was quiet.

'Mmm?'

'What's that cat on the wall?'

I sat up and turned my body to where a tabby cat was sitting on the broken, chipped and shabby brick wall that lined our yard. I knew it wasn't Slinky, because this cat had square marking around its eyes. It sat very still, staring at us. A mini staring competition went down before the cat turned its head and jumped from the wall.

At around that time, the other four joined us outside, August twirling a rugby ball in his hands, Wednesday carrying lemonade and Summer and Indigo carrying sandwiches and cookies.

We sat down in the grass to eat lunch. Summer had made a sandwich for each of us, and the cookies were from the baking we did yesterday. The lemonade was something Wednesday must have whipped up; she was the master of all things lemon.

Afterwards, August took the ball out from underneath him (he was sitting on it) and threw it up in the air before catching it again. 'Who's up for a game?'

We were _always _playing rugby. We loved it and we were good at it. August was the best at it. He even played on the school's rugby team. Indigo was also good at it, but only because everyone wet themselves when she came running at them.

It was great having her on our team. Along with Indigo was myself and Germany, while August, Wednesday and Summer made up the other team. Our teams were often variations of this, with one boy on each side, one of the two best players on each side and one of the older kids (Summer, August and Indigo) on each side. Our yard, as I mentioned before, was big, and big enough to play a good game of rugby. We played for longer than a normal game goes for (most days we did), and by the time we called it quits, August's team had won.

'You guys so cheated,' Indigo mumbled as we went inside.

'We did not!' Wednesday argued.

'Did too!'

'How would we have cheated?' August said.

'Adding on points you didn't earn, breaking the rules throughout the game ...'

'If we did cheat, why didn't you call us out on it _during _the game?'

Having no good comeback to this, Indigo did what she always did; turned to violence. Summer stopped it though before someone really got hurt. Indigo had broken her arm twice fighting before.

Most of us sat in the lounge room, but Summer and August sat at the dining table. We all assumed they were writing letters to their respective partner. Summer was dating a boy named Ryan, who was the same age as her. They had been dating since the end of school in June and he was on vacation in France at the moment. August was writing to his girlfriend, Valerie, who was very pretty but also very annoying. August doesn't think it'll last very long.

'Good evening!' Mum trilled as she danced in. 'Did we have a good day? I know I did! We'll be swimming in money soon enough, if we more days like this one!'

We all just looked at each other and rolled our eyes. She said this almost every day, and most days, she didn't make half as much as she thought she did.

After dinner that night, at around seven, we all sat in the lounge room again, pretty much quiet except the crackling of our radio. Music was playing but there was also a faint crackle here and there that told us we really needed a new one. Mum was sitting on the floor and working on her mosaic. My mum was one of those artists that liked to experiment in all different areas of art until she mastered it and mosaic was her newest thing. There was the occasional clatter as she dropped one tile onto her pile and rustled around for another one. August and Summer were playing Scrabble at the dining table. You could hear the occasional giggle from August and know that he had just made up a naughty word; no matter how mature he thought he was, he always got a kick out of being cheeky in Scrabble. Or in life for that matter.

Wednesday, Germany and I were reading. Wednesday was reading a book about cooking. She really enjoyed all that stuff and spoke about being a chef when she was older. Germany and I, however, were reading our fantasy novels.

As if we were one person, we all turned our heads towards the front door when we heard a knock. We then stared at each other for a while before my mother stood up and walked over, muttering about who in their right mind would be calling in for a surprise visit at this hour.

I had to agree with her. Who was that at the door?

Curious, I followed her and stood a few feet behind her when she opened the door.

I was shocked. The woman standing there was unlike any other woman I had seen before. Her hair was pulled up into a bun so tight it looked as if it might be hurting her head and she was wearing robes of emerald green. The eyes behind the square glasses found mine and stared at me for what seemed like an eternity before flicking back to my mother.

'Ms. McCarthy? I'm here to speak to you about your daughter, Seven McCarthy.'


	2. Chapter Two

**Seven ~ Chapter Two ~ One Surprise, Two Months, Three Decisions, Four People, Five Beds, Six Goodbyes, Seven Reactions**

The woman, who I now knew as Professor McGonagall, had started by telling me I was a witch. Quickly growing furious, my mother started shouting about the nerve of this strange woman waltzing into her home and calling her daughter a witch. Professor McGonagall then proceeded to tell us about the wizarding world and Hogwarts and how it was not-so-rare that a witch, or a female with magical abilities, was born into a "Muggle" family. When asked what a Muggle was, she told us it was someone with no magical ability. I think we all silently agreed it was a rather unflattering name for it.

My mum was quick to believe her, especially after asking in-depth questions that Professor McGonagall easily and quickly answered. This led the rest of us, including me, to believe that it was some strange joke Mum set up. I really did want to believe, but despite all my imaging and pretending, this did seem a little far-fetched. As an argument, Professor McGonagall asked me if I ever did things that were a little out of the ordinary. His led me to think about the times during card games when a card was one number one minute and then when I looked back it was another. Or the times when I forgot to feed Slinky and when I went to do it late at night, there was magically remains of food in Slinky's bowl that were not there the night before. But I still couldn't believe her; perhaps these were just coincidences. Finally defeated, but still hesitant to do so, Professor McGonagall reached into the folds of her robes and pulled out a long polished piece of wood. She then pointed it to the coffee table and with a flick, turned it into a pig and back again.

Flabbergasted, we lowly started to believe her after a bit more talk. Technology in the 70s was not advanced enough to do _that_. Mum of course started ranting about hoe exciting this all was and she was going to tell the whole family that her daughter had _magical powers_. This happy thought was cut short though when Professor McGonagall told us we couldn't tell anyone. The Statue of Secrecy bounded us to this law, and punishment would come with the breaking of it. This dampened Mum's mood for about two seconds before she was onto a new exciting aspect of this discovery.

Summer didn't say anything. She looked from Professor McGonagall and I, disbelief all over her face. I was tempted to tell her to shut her mouth before flies flew in, but stopped myself. She was blinking fast as if trying to wake up from a bad dream and made me incredibly nervous. I wondered if she would ever look at me again.

August didn't say anything either, but he stared into a spot in space and looked as if he was trying to solve a really hard math problem - which he could have been for all I knew.

Indigo jumped up and ran to get food, because that just seemed to be the answer to everything.

Wednesday, always the chatterbox, asked Professor McGonagall questions upon questions about "this Hogwarts place" and the world of magic – questions I definitely wanted the answers to, but couldn't seem to ask. She answered all of them patiently, but she could barely finish her sentence before Wednesday was asking the next question.

After about five questions from Wednesday, Germany his face screwed up like he was in pain, placed his hands over his ears and stormed from the room. I flinched at the sound of his bedroom door slamming. I stopped thinking about Summer started thinking about Germany instead. Would _he _ever talk to me again?

All I could do was sit there, only half listening to Wednesday and Professor McGonagall. Another part of me was worrying and the last part of me was thinking about how impossible this all was. Magic was something that only existed in mine and Germany's stories. Witches, wizards … they weren't real. At least, I didn't think they were.

Until now.

A sudden burst of energy shot through me and a million questions went through my mind. The one I decided to ask was probably the dumbest one I could have chosen though: 'Do dragons really exist?'

Professor McGonagall gave me what I guessed was a rare and knowing smile. 'Yes, dragons do exist. You'll find a lot of the creatures you have heard stories about are. But Hogwarts is protected from anything that'll put students in danger. No harm will come to you while you are there.'

'Who says she's going?' Indigo said, going on the defensive.

'Well, no one Miss. McCarthy. But it's where all British witches and wizards go to study magic and your sister would be foolish not to do the same.'

'What if Seven doesn't want to be a witch?' August said, being pulled out of his reverie and dragging his eyes away from the spot on the floor to Professor McGonagall.

'Regardless of whether or not she _wants _to be a witch, she is one. But whether she attends Hogwarts or not is her decision.'

Indigo and August opened their mouths to protest, but I got in before they could.

'I want to go.'

Two months later, Summer and I were in our room packing my trunk. I was leaving for Hogwarts the day after. Summer had eventually gotten used to the idea of me having magical powers (the term "witch" was still a little weird for me) and was even supportive of the idea. She was the one constantly reassuring me that Hogwarts would be great and that I was going to have a lot of fun there.

August was staring to get used to the idea, although he still skirted around the subject just like the others did. I suppose them thinking I was "going off to some whack-job boarding school to say some fancy words and learn a few magic tricks" (that was how Wednesday put it – I heard her and Indigo talking one day) was better than what Germany was doing, which was not talking to me at all. It was a miracle he would sit in the same room as me.

I understood that he might have been shocked but I had no idea why he was just ignoring my existence.

'I don't know what books to take,' I sighed, looking to Summer for some advice.

'Beside your spell books you mean? Where are those by the way?'

'Umm …' Laying on my stomach, I dug around under my bed for a while looking for my school books, and taking them out as I found them. Professor McGonagall had taken my mother and I to Diagon Alley, a wizarding village, to buy all the things I would need for school. This included books, stationary, potion ingredients, equipment, robes and a wand (alder, dragon heartstring core, nine and a half inches, slightly springy). Summer and I had been staying up late into the night reading the books by torchlight under the bedcovers, and finding them quite interesting. My wand, however, was an entirely different story and became more of a temptation than anything else. I polished it compulsively and had to remind myself again and again not to try to use it otherwise I'd be expelled from Hogwarts before I even got there. After finding the last of the books, I started to stack them in my trunk.

In the way of other books, I decided on taking the second and third books of the series I was reading as well as a few of my Roald Dahl favourites. Roald Dahl had always been my favourite author, even if he didn't write about dragons.

I wanted to take more, but Summer managed to convince me that I'd be too busy being magical to read as much as I did now. This made me giggle, especially when she started dramatically telling me of all the adventures I would go on.

Summer was in charge of my clothes and I was in charge of the rest. Sum had to sit on the trunk for us to shut it properly, but eventually we did and August helped us haul it down the stairs and place it next to the door in preparation for the next day. Usually it would take nine hours to get to London from Dublin, where we live, but Professor McGonagall managed to d us a favour and hire a "Ministry" car that would get us there in a much shorter time. Even so, we would still have to leave at four thirty in the morning to get to Kings Cross Station on time for the eleven o'clock train. No one was happy about this, but no one more unhappy than Germany, who was quite kicking-and-screaming about even coming to the station to say goodbye to me.

Just as planned, the "Ministry" car showed up at four thirty. We all rushed around, making sure we all had two pieces of toast (although Indigo insisted this wasn't enough and had five) and a cup of coffee (except for me because I wasn't allowed coffee yet. Apparently that was a privilege for kids twelve and up) before finally piling into the car, making sure I had my trunk and Slinky in a cage. Cats were allowed at Hogwarts and Mum and I, after much discussion, had finally decided that I was responsible enough to take Slinky to Hogwarts with me.

The car was enormous, despite what it looked like on the outside. It looked like it could only seat five people, like normal cars did. But this one fit all seven of us comfortably, plus the mysterious person that was driving.

Everyone fell asleep quickly, despite the half-drunk coffees they all had. I couldn't sleep though; I felt as if _I _was the one that just had a cup of coffee. Adrenaline was pumping through my veins as I thought about what was ahead of me. I was scared for it, but I was also excited for it and nervous and worried. So forgive a person for not being able to sleep. I was nervous because I didn't know what to expect. What would life be like at Hogwarts? I was worried for the fear of not making friends. I was worried because what if I was so horrible at magic they kicked me out? And then I returned home and Germany still wasn't talking to me? And the others realised what an abomination I was and hated me too? And I was scared because life would still go on in Dublin while I was at Hogwarts. And that meant there was a possibility of missing things and being forgotten about. But the excitement of finally getting to live one of my stories was trumping over all my worries and fears. That dream was the only thing stopping me from telling the driver to turn around and take me home.

We arrived at Kings Cross Station with half an hour to spare. I had let Slinky out in the car, but she wasn't happy about being put back in her cage. She gnawed at the bars as I said my goodbyes.

I said goodbye with a quick hug to all my siblings, except for Germany. I tried not to cry at this; I would have thought that Germany would be the most excited for me. After all, this was our dream. But maybe that's why he wasn't talking to me – I was going on this adventure and leaving him behind.

Summer and I hugged the longest. With one last squeeze and a kiss on the top of my head, she released me and I took my mother's hand.

Professor McGonagall had given us specific instructions to walk through the wall between platforms nine and ten. She said this would take us to platform nine and three quarters, which was where I would board the Hogwarts Express.

Preparing ourselves for this, we took a run at the wall. I think we both had our eyes shut tight, expecting to run into it and experience excruciating pain. But we did pass through it, and slowing to a walk, I turned back to look at the wall now that I was at the other side of it. It was then that it hit me that this was really happening. Because unless this was just some giant dream (which I really hoped it wasn't), no one just slips through a wall like that. Looking back to the platform, I was greeted with the sight of people dressed in robes and carrying around trunks and cages with their pets. Some were saying goodbye to their families, some were meeting up with their friends and some were boarding the train. I looked up and saw the sign that read Platform 9 and ¾ and my face broke out in a large smile.

Having gotten my trunk onto the train with the help of my mother and stepping onto the train myself, I turned to my mother for a final goodbye in which she hugged and kissed me many times, telling me to have fun and write every day.

'I love you, Seven,' she said into my hair in one last hug.

'I love you too, Mum. But I really need to get on the train.'

'Right. Well, I won't keep you any longer.'

She smiled a brave smile as her eyes filled with tears and I smiled back.

'I'll see you at Christmas, Mum," I said.

'See you at Christmas.'

With those parting words, I got my trunk and Slinky's cage and started making my way down the train corridor, looking for a compartment. Most were starting to fill up as students boarded – there was a few minutes to go before the train left, if that.

As I walked, I could feel the train start to move. It left at eleven o'clock on the dot. As the train started to pick up pace, faces of tearful and smiling faces blurred past until the station was out of sight.

_This is it_, I thought to myself, walking again after unconsciously stopping. _No turning back now. I'm off to a boarding school a million miles away where I'll be learning magic tricks and how to brew a potion._

I laughed to myself. If someone had told me that a few months ago I would have laughed in their face and told them that that was a good one.

But walking down the train that was taking me to some unknown place, it seemed inevitable that I had been plunged into this world of magic.

All the compartments were full with groups of friends, and most of them looked older than me. There were a few compartments with people that looked about my age, but I was far too shy to approach such a large group and ask if I could sit with them.

I remember on the first day of school sitting on my own in the corner. A group of boys eventually approached me, with the intent to bully me. And I might have been shy, but I was awfully good at standing up for myself. So this bullying quest eventually turned into the beginning of a friendship. I also had girlfriends who I had fun with, but I found boys less annoying and easier to get on with.

Finally, I had to pluck up the courage and ask someone if I could join them in their compartment. To make it easier, it was a boy and he was on his own, so I figured I could do that.

'Can I sit in here? Everywhere else is full,' I said, my words coming out in a rush. The boy, who had been struggling to get his trunk into the overhead compartment, looked surprised when he turned around.

'Um, yeah, you can sit.'

With one final push, he managed to get his trunk into the overhead and then saw I had my own. He rolled his eyes, but helped me anyway and we finally got it up after much effort.

Collapsing onto either side of the compartment, there was a moment of awkward silence before he said, 'So what's your name?'

I looked over at him from the window, his posture aggressively poor and his light brown hair flopping into his strangely coloured eyes.

'Seven McCarthy,' I replied quietly.

'Seven?'

I nodded and waited for it.

'Like the number?' he said.

I sighed. 'Yes, like the number.'

'That's weird.'

_That's rude_, I thought.

He stared at me expectantly.

'What's your name?' I asked.

He puffed out his chest proudly and said, 'Cepheus Black.'

I looked out the window again.

'Didn't you hear me?' he said, moving his body so he was in my line of sight. I looked back at him.

'Yes,' I said. 'You said your name is Cepheus Black.'

He looked dumbfounded.

'What?' I said.

"I just thought you would have more of a reaction. Maybe some questions?'

'Oh, I'm sorry. Let's try that again.' He looked pleased. 'What's your name?'

'Cepheus Black.'

'Black?' I said and he nodded expectantly.

'Like the colour?'

Whatever he expected, that wasn't it, and his shoulders slumped in disappointment as his face filled with fury.

'Do you not know who I am?' he exclaimed.

'You're Cepheus Black! You've only told me twice in the last minute!'

He looked like he was about to explode when someone else came into the compartment.

'Hey Cep- Who's this?' The boy looked like Caelum, except this boy had black hair and grey eyes.

'This is Seven McCarthy,' he said through gritted teeth. 'And she does not know who I am.'

'Then why don't you tell her mate?' The new guy said this as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

'I did! Twice! She still doesn't seem to understand!'

'Maybe she's just stupid.'

'I am not stupid!' I shouted. This was getting increasingly frustrating. 'I _know _his name is Cepheus Black but I do not get why it is such a big deal!'

'It's a big deal because I'm a Black! Do you not know who the Blacks are?'

'A bunch of buttheads, if they're all like you.'

Cepheus Black let out a groan of frustration and stormed from the compartment and down the corridor.

'A big bunch of buttheads,' I muttered.

'We're not all that bad,' the other guy said as he took the place that Cepheus was just sitting.

'We're?'

'I'm a Black too: Sirius Orion Black.'

These names made me wonder: maybe all witches and wizards got given strange names?

'And that was my cousin,' Sirius continued, 'Cepheus Alphard Black. He's got a bit of "family pride". At least, that's what my mum says. But I reckon he's just a git. What was your name again?'

'Seven McCarthy. Why was he getting so frustrated with me?'

'Because he thinks everyone should know who the Blacks are and bow down to them. But I bet you're Muggleborn, aren't you?'

'Um excuse me?'

'Muggleborn. It means you come from a family of Muggles.'

'Oh well, then I guess I am Muggleborn.'

'My parents say that Muggleborns are scum, but you seem alright so I don't know what they're waffling on about. Don't mind Ceph, he's just a prat. See you around Seven.' And he left just as abruptly as he had arrived.

After a while, I decided I should probably change into my school robes. I doubted we would be arriving at Hogwarts anytime soon, but now seemed as good of a time as any.

Just as I had finished changing, the door to the compartment flew open and another boy fell in. Thankfully, it wasn't one of the Black boys this time.

But this boy was wheezing aggressively, his face red and his platinum blond hair plastered to his forehead by sweat.

'Are you okay?' I shrieked, slightly hysterical and rushing over to wear he had collapsed onto the seat of the train.

He nodded quickly, trying to catch his breath. 'I'm fine … I think … I outrun him,' he said in between breaths.

I relaxed a bit, seeing as his face was starting to look less like the colour of a tomato and more like the colour of a peach. I moved back to my original seat and was immediately shocked by his crystal blue eyes; they had more of an impact from a distance.

'Outrun who?' I said.

'I don't know, this guy just came up to me and introduced himself and then all of sudden he was shouting about me not knowing who he was but I kept saying I _did _know who he was because he kept telling me!' He looked very distressed as he told me this, looking to the door as if this boy (and I had a pretty good idea of who it was) was going to find him and finish whatever it was that he started.

'Let me guess,' I said. 'Cepheus Black.'

The boy nodded.

'Yeah, I met him myself. Are you a Muggleborn too?'

He shook his head. 'Half-blood, apparently. My dad is a wizard but he left before I was born, and my mum is a Muggle so she didn't know about it. What about you?'

'Muggleborn. What's your name?'

'Niall Scabior. Yours?'

'Seven McCarthy.'

'Seven?'

I nodded and resisted the urge to roll my eyes.

'Like the number? Cool.'

The fact that he said my name was "cool" rather than "weird" made me like Niall a lot more than I like Cepheus Black.

We talked a bit more, where I learned he was an only child but his mum was a lawyer so he got a lot of toys and gadgets he could play with instead. I then told him about my family until a woman pushing a trolley came past.

'Would you like anything from the trolley?' she asked kindly.

We both jumped up, expecting to see Muggle sweets and lollies. I didn't have much money with me – just a "galleon" and a few "sickles" – but I only figured that I'd buy a small chocolate bar.

We certainly did find sweets and lollies, but not the kind we were used to. We saw Chocolate Frogs and Flavoured Beans and Liquorice Wands and pumpkin juice, plus many more never before seen things and eventually, Niall decided just to get a bit of everything. He had more Galleons than I would probably ever see.

Sitting back in our seats, Niall immediately started ripping into the food. 'Would you like one?' he asked, his mouth full of "Chocolate Frog".

'No thanks,' I said but he threw one at me anyway.

I never completely understood why people asked you something if they weren't going to listen to your answer.

I ended up opening it, because to be honest, I was quite curious as to what magical food was like. The frog, much to my surprise, got away, but I did get a card of Morgana, who I had heard of and read about. Niall got a man named Albus Dumbledore, who I discovered, after reading, was Headmaster of Hogwarts.

'I think you can collect these,' Niall said. 'We should start a collection together.'

I agreed and it was at this point in the ride that Slinky was starting to get really antsy.

'Do you mind if I let her out?' Niall shook his head so I unlatched the cage. Slinky, clearly angry at me, curled up on the other side of the seat. 'Do you have any pets?'

'No, my mum doesn't like them. I asked her for an owl, but she said that maybe she would get me one for Christmas.'

'How much do you know about Hogwarts?' he asked me.

'Not much. I just know that it's where they teach you magic and that there are no dragons.'

Only a little fazed by my random piece of random information, Niall pulled a large book from his trunk, which we had just left on the floor. It was too hard to get it in the overhead, especially with Cepheus' stuff talking up half of it. I wondered what would happen to all of it when we got off the train.

'I bought this book at Flourish and Blotts,' Niall told me, coming to sit next to me. 'It tells you all about Hogwarts! I haven't read much of it though. Do you wanna have a read?'

And so the rest of the train ride was spent looking and reading through _Hogwarts; A History _which did tell you about Hogwarts and its history. Eventually it got too dark to read, despite the light in the compartment, but I felt confident enough that I knew enough about Hogwarts now not to look or feel stupid. In fact, in conjunction with my knowledge of magic I'd gotten from my school books, I might even pass for a half-blood.

The train finally arrived at Hogsmeade Station. Niall and I deliberated whether or not to take our trunks, but upon seeing no one else had, we just left them in the compartment. I locked Slinky back up before leaving the train and getting onto the platform with Niall. The platform was bustling with students, too wrapped up in their own thoughts to give the tiny first years any direction.

Thankfully, a great booming voice carried over the crowd calling all first years. Niall and I drifted towards it to a giant of a man. He towered over everyone else on the platform and his face was mostly just hair though underneath it all were kind black eyes. His eyes and warm smile made me feel slightly less intimidated by him, but not much less.

'Firs' years over here! Is everyone here? Yes? Alright then, my name is Rebeus Hagrid. Yer'll be seeing me around Hogwarts and such. I'll be takin' yer ter the castle! Follow me!' He motioned with his dustbin lid sized hands and looking at each other nervously, all us first years eventually began to follow as one giant group.

He led us to a lake where we were presented with many boats.

'Four ter a boat, no more than that!' he shouted and we all scrambled into groups of four to get into a boat. Niall and I ended up sharing a boat with Sirius and his friend, who he introduced as James.

The boats seemed to move of their own accord through the lake, which made it an enjoyable trip. The only thing stopping me from completely taking in the pretty view was James and Sirius' constant battle throughout the whole ride. They kept trying to push each other into the lake, which was perfectly fine I supposed (boys will be boys), but I was scared that the boat would capsize in the process.

Finally, Sirius was the one that managed to push James in the lake. He laughed afterwards before realising that he had just pushed a boy in a great big lake and the boats were moving along without that boy.

Thankfully though, or rather frighteningly, something large and with tentacles scooped up the bespectacled boy and placed him back in the boat before disappearing under the dark and glassy surface.

The four us sat paralysed for a moment before James and Sirius managed to see the joke in it all and started laughing hysterically.

It wasn't until Hogwarts came into view that everyone, including them, just sat and stared and drank it all in.

The great big castle loomed over us, looking intimidating but welcoming and beautiful. The lights looked extremely pretty against the dark sky and made the place look warmer, which I'm sure James, who was shivering, would welcome very quickly.

Hagrid, after throwing his awfully large and heavy-looking coat over James, led us to the Entrance Hall. It was a large and elegant room with a giant marble staircase and standing in the middle of it was Professor McGonagall, looking very much how she did when I had first met her.

Hagrid and her exchanged a few words before she led us past a room with its door slightly ajar and its inside sounding as though it was filled with people, to another smaller room where she spoke to us about the four houses, the Sorting, house points and the house cup.

I already knew from reading _Hogwarts; A History _that I didn't want to be Sorted into Slytherin. Almost every dark witch and wizard has come from Slytherin and I did not want to be a Dark person. I predicted I'd be put in Hufflepuff, but I must admit that I really did like the sound of Gryffindor.

There was a short silence when she finished her little speech as she fixed every one of us with a piercing stare. We all looked at each other, looks of concern of our faces and before she left, she suggested we try to get ourselves looking as presentable as possible.

Immediately everyone started to worry about how we would be Sorted. I read in the book that you had to try on a hat and that would decide where you would go, but that book was published an awfully long time ago and might have been a little outdated by that time.

Everyone immediately fell silent when Professor McGonagall returned. I silently thanked whatever Gods had sent her back because all the talk was starting to get a little overwhelming.

She announced that the Sorting Ceremony was about to start and ordered us to form a single file line. We rushed to do so and I grabbed Niall's wrist to make sure we weren't separated in the bustle. This was scary enough without someone I knew by my side. Or rather in this case, behind me.

We followed her out of the room and through double doors, the same double doors we had passed earlier. Inside were four long tables, each with students laughing and talking animatedly. What caught my eye though was the hundreds of candles suspended in mid hair, just floating there, seeming to hang from nothing in particular.

Looking up I saw the ceiling that Niall and I had read about that was bewitched to look like the sky. Tonight was a clear night with bright stars scattered across the black canvas.

Gradually, silence descended over the students as people started to notice Professor McGonagall was waiting for it.

'When I call your name, you will put on the hat and sit on the stool,' she said. 'Aubrey, Bertram!'

Aubrey, Bertram looking back to us constantly as if for help, slowly walked up to the stool and put the hat on his head. It slipped down his forehead a little.

'HUFFLEPUFF!' The Hat decided after only a short while, causing the Hufflepuff table to erupt into cheers. Then Belby, Jonathon was up, who was also Sorted into Hufflepuff.

When Cepheus Black was called up to the stool, the hat wasn't on his head for ten seconds before it yelled, 'SLYTHERIN!' and with a content grin, he walked over to the clapping Slytherin table.

Next up was Sirius Black, who took a little longer to be Sorted than the others. The whole time, Sirius' face was screwed up and he was muttering something that no one could hear. But finally, the Hat had made its decision.

'GRYFFINDOR!'

The hall fell silent. No table cheered. Sirius' face was a mix of shock and relief as he walked over to could only be assumed to be the Gryffindor table and sat down. The hall erupted into whispers, but I had no idea what they were whispering about.

All I could think about was how maybe Gryffindor wasn't the house I wanted to be Sorted into after all.

After more students had been Sorted (it was weird; Gryffindor cheered for the other students that were Sorted there, even if it was only half-heartedly), Professor McGonagall finally called my name.

The Hat slid down over my eyes, as it had for most people, but was surprised me was the fact that the hat could _talk. _

'Hmm, there's definitely some brains there, a lot of wit. But you are also very loyal and very brave, although you might not see it in yourself … The question is where to put you? Mm … I think you belong … in GRYFFINDOR!'

A little shocked, but happy all the same, I walked over to the Gryffindor table to be greeted with loud cheers and claps on the back as I sat down.

Niall was also Sorted into Gryffindor, which I was glad for. At least I had one friend in the House I was in.

Finally, Zambini, Ruth was Sorted ('SLYTHERIN!') and the Sorting Ceremony was over. Professor McGonagall took away the stool and the hat and an elderly man with a great long and silver beard stood up to address the hall. His blue eyes sparkled behind his half-moon spectacles and I recognised him as Dumbledore, the Headmaster.

'Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts! I won't keep you waiting for the feast any longer, so dig in!'

When I looked back at the table, I was shocked to see it was sagging under the weight of food, cutlery and crockery when just moments before it had been completely clear.

I put a little mashed potato on my plate with some vegetables and a lamb chop. With my already small appetite and the fact that I had filled up on the train, there wasn't much room left in my stomach.

After dinner, was dessert, and not being able to resist, I grabbed a treacle tart. Throughout the whole of dinner and dessert, Niall talked non-stop. Which would have been fine if he stopped when his mouth was full of food. If he and I were going to be friends, I was going to have to teach this boy some manners.

When everyone had finished eating, the tables cleared themselves and Dumbledore stood back up.

'Welcome, everyone, to a new year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry! Now you have filled your bellies, I have a few notices to give out. First off, I would like to welcome our new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, Professor Sybell.' He motioned to a young woman who gave a small smile and wave to the students. 'I know you'll all try your best to make her feel welcome. Just a reminder to _all _students that the Forbidden Forest is rightly named for good reasons. Any student without permission to enter the Forest will face punishment.' He paused, his eyes sweeping over the students. 'Our caretaker Mr. Filch has asked me to remind you that magic is banned in the corridors as well as an extensive list of items. For that list, you can go to Mr. Filch's office. Please consult your Quidditch team captain or Madam Hooch for information on when the tryouts are. Please bear in mind first years are not permitted to try out for the team. Now before you head off to bed, I would like to remind you that while you are divided into houses that does not mean you need be divided as people. As a school, it is vital that we stand united. That is all. Now off to bed! You've got an exciting first day ahead of you! Pip pip!'

While his last message seemed like a casual reminder, it left everyone feeling a little solemn and instead of the excited chatter that could be heard throughout the feast had now become a dull murmur.

Two people, a boy and a girl dressed in Gryffindor robes and wearing badges were calling all the Gryffindor first years. We followed them out of the Hall and up the marble staircase to where they led us through the castle. 'You might want to mind the staircases!' the boy warned. 'They like to move.'

Apparently the staircases weren't the only things that liked to move; the portraits said quick hellos or snubbed us as we walked past.

Finally we reached a portrait of a Fat Lady. Looking bored she said, 'Password?'

'Dragon pox.' The girl spoke with confidence and the portrait swung open to reveal an entrance into a room. 'Remember that because that'll be the password for now and you'll need it to get to the Common Room.'

Stepping through the portrait hole, we entered a richly decorated room in colours of scarlet with a fire crackling in a fireplace surrounded by comfortable looking armchairs.

'This is the Gryffindor Common Room,' the boy said. 'And we are the Gryffindor Prefects. My name is Christopher and this is Natalie.'

'This is the room you'll probably be spending most of your free time in – doing homework, spending time with friends. You'll find your dormitories upstairs. The girl's dormitories are to the left, while the boys' are to the right.'

'We suggest you head upstairs before the rest of Gryffindor House get here. Good night,' Chris said and with a nod of his head and a smile, he and Natalie went up the stairs, Chris to the right and Natalie to the left.

After looking at each other for an awkward moment, a the sound of student's chatter we made a silent agreement to listen to the prefect's advice. I said a quick goodnight to Niall and headed up the stairs and into the dormitory labelled 'First Years'.

I shared a dormitory with four other girls. One of them, Martha, a girl with long dark hair and dark eyes, didn't talk to us and instead went straight to bed, drawing the curtains around her four-poster shut.

I learned from Lily, a girl with auburn hair and emerald green eyes, that she was also a Muggleborn, but was lucky, because her friend Severus was the one that told her she was a witch and told her all about Hogwarts before she even got her letter.

Mary was a pure-blood, although she said her family wasn't as prejudiced as some other pure-blood families could be. Mary was a little like Indigo in the sense that she had a little extra weight on her. Mary wasn't fat, but she wasn't skinny either. She had light brown eyes and light brown hair that was cut to her chin.

Florence (or Flo) was extremely funny and smiled a lot, her hazel eyes lighting up when she did so and she flicked her waist-length blonde hair a lot. She was also a pure-blood, but was considered a blood traitor. She said she really didn't care because blood didn't matter.

Both Mary and I didn't ask much, preferring to listen, but Lily and Florence found ways to include us in the conversation. It was only a short one though, one that took place while we got ready for bed. Finally, the others went to sleep, but I wanted to stay up a little bit longer to do something.

'Aren't you going to bed Seven?' Lily asked curiously.

'I will soon. I've just got to do something first.' I smiled at her and with a smile back, she climbed into bed, pulling the curtains around it.

Laying on my stomach on the bed, I dipped my quill in my ink and began to write.


	3. Chapter Three

**Seven ~ Chapter Three ~ One Ghost, Two Troubles, Three Friends, Four Classes, Five Words, Six Strips of Bacon, Seven-ty Points**

I woke up early the next morning; I was far too excited to sleep in plus I wanted to finish writing the letter to Summer that I started last night, telling her about the castle and the people I had met so far. When I had finished, I got dressed and ready for the day, before sitting on my bed and reading my school book about Charms. Out of all the subjects, I think that was the one I was looking forward to the most.

By that time, the others started getting up and getting ready. I think they were a bit surprised that I was already up, but they didn't say anything about it.

Martha left before any of us without saying a word. I wondered if she had made any friends yet and I really hoped she had.

It took Lily and Mary a while to get Florence out of bed. Eventually, they had to ask me for my help. Mary and Lily were holding on to an ankle each and pulling, while I was trying to pry Flo's grip from the bed head. She fell to the floor with a loud thud and even then it took some serious convincing to get her to get off the floor and into her school robes.

'Are you coming Seven?' Lily asked me when her, Flo and Mary started heading for the door.

'What? Um, yeah!' I said and scrambled off the bed, leaving the charms book on the pillow and following them down the stairs.

I supposed last night was the beginning of our friendship. That was surprisingly easy.

'What was that you were reading Seven?' Not one of those _boring _school books like Lily does I hope,' Florence said.

'Actually, it _was _a school book. I find them quite interesting.'

'See, I'm not the only one!' Lily declared, sticking her tongue out at Florence, who stuck her tongue out back.

'What subject are you most interested in?' Lily asked, linking arms with me. By now were in the common room and walking towards the portrait hole.

'Ooh, charms, definitely; I can't wait to learn all those cool spells!'

'Charms does seem fun, but I'm excited for potions and defence against the dark arts.'

'Nerds,' Florence fake-coughed.

'Hey! I am a Muggleborn, so –'

'I'm a Muggleborn too,' I interrupted.

'_We _are Muggleborns," Lily corrected herself quite loudly. 'So this is all very new and exciting for us. You've grown up with it. Of course we're gonna want to read our books and be excited about learning magic.'

Even Florence had to agree that Lily's was a good argument.

Mary had been quiet during all this and it made me wonder if she was shy, like I could sometimes be. Or whether she just preferred to listen.

We finally arrived at the Great Hall (after making a few wrong turns and eventually asking for directions). By the time we got there, it was already full with Hogwarts students and the four of us had to squeeze onto the Gryffindor table.

Apparently there were big eaters all over the world, and Florence was fine proof of that. She was heaping bacon, eggs, hash browns, sausages, toast and baked beans on to her plate before I could even see what was offered for breakfast. I just decided on some bacon because, who doesn't like bacon?

'I daresay you eat more than my sister, Flo,' I laughed.

'You have a sister?' Mary questioned.

'_A _sister? I have three! Plus two brothers.'

Florence let out a long, low whistle.

'What's that like?' Mary asked, somewhat wistfully.

'Tiring. Annoying. But kinda fun.'

It was silent for a while, except for the sound of Florence eating.

'Does anyone know how I can post a letter without an owl?'

'A letter already?'

'Yeah …' I admit, a little embarrassed. 'My eldest sister Summer asked me to write her straightaway.'

'Well, I don't know how'd you post a letter without an owl …' Florence trailed off before her eyes lit up with an idea. 'Oi, Fabe!' she called down the table.

'What?' an older boy called back, in almost the exact same manner.

'My friend wants to send a letter but doesn't own an owl!'

'Interesting story, Florence! It really is!'

'How would she go about that you git?'

The boy explained that her friend should go to the owlery and use one of the school owls. And also, that she was a loser.

'That was my cousin Fabian. Bit of a git, but he's also head boy, so I'd figured he'd know.'

'Do you have any other family at Hogwarts?' Mary asked.

'Well, there's Fabe, who's in seventh year, but there's also Gideon, who's in fifth year. Also a git, but also my cousin. Cousin Molly, who's Fabian and Gideon's sister also used to go here but she's been out for a while now. She's married and has a son, Bill, who's almost one.'

Flo also talked a lot.

'What are your families like?' she asked the other two.

'Only child,' Mary mumbled.

'I have a sister, but she's a Muggle,' Lily also talked with a kind of sadness, which made me think that perhaps her relationship with her sister was as unsteady as mine was with Germany.

The silence that had settled over us was interrupted by Niall's rather ungraceful entrance.

'Hey Seven! You know, I've been looking for you _everywhere_. How was your first night?'

He was attempting to squeeze in between Florence and I.

'Um, Niall?' I said.

'Yeah?' By this time, he managed to squeeze in and was heaping scrambled eggs onto his plate.

'Never mind,' I muttered.

'Who's this?' Florence said through gritted teeth.

'Um guys, this is Niall. Niall, this is Mary, Lily and Florence.' I pointed to them as I introduced them.

Unable to speak with so much egg in his mouth, he settled for a smile. And quite frankly, I would have rathered he just ignored them. They flinched and half-heartedly smiled back.

Professor McGonagall came walking along the Gryffindor table, handing out timetables. Today I had Double Potions, Break, Herbology, Lunch, Transfiguration and then – yes, Charms!

We went back to Gryffindor Tower to collect our bags and the books we needed for the day before heading to the dungeons for Double Potions. Well, I had assumed we were going to the dungeons.

Thankfully, we found the way and as we waited for the teacher, I scoped out the class while Niall talked incessantly to me. Florence and Mary talked to each other while Lily talked a black haired boy dressed in green robes that stood in front of her kind of awkwardly. I got the feeling the girls didn't really like Niall.

Sirius and James, the boys Niall and I shared a boat with last night, were also there, laughing and messing around with two other boys. One of them was laughing and talking, but seemed kind of tired and nervous. The other one was about a head shorter than the rest and had watery eyes. He also seemed nervous, but a different kind of nervous to what the other one was. This boy looked as if he was trying too hard.

My eyes raked over the Slytherins, who we seemed to be sharing a class with. I don't know if it was just my imagination, but they all _looked _evil. I averted my gaze before one saw me looking and decided to curse me.

Big mistake.

I locked eyes with Cepheus Black, who had his arms crossed and was leaning against the wall. His eyebrows flicked up and his eyes clouded with anger. But before he could come and scream his name at me again, a sandy-haired man with the beginnings of a large gut and a moustache, came around the corner and addressed the class.

'Hello class! Welcome to your first day at Hogwarts! Of course, you don't want to spend it out here all day! Forward in.' He greeted us all with large grins as we went inside the classroom and found our seats.

Niall and I sat in the second row behind Lily and her friend, and Mary and Flo sat on the other side of me.

'My name is Professor Slughorn and I will be your Potions Master. Now before we start the lesson, just a little quiz, to see who's been doing their reading …'

I felt pretty special for answering a question correctly and earning Gryffindor ten points. That was until Lily earned twenty points and so did her friend, for Slytherin. James and Sirius also earned ten points each for Gryffindor.

After that, we did some theory work for the rest of the lesson, which was dull, but Professor Slughorn said it was necessary.

After that was break. Lily, Flo and Mary went to do their own thing while Niall and I found a spot in the courtyard to sit and chat.

Niall was nice and very funny and break went fast. It was just a shame that the girls didn't like Niall as much as I did.

Next was Herbology with the Ravenclaws. A stout woman with wild hair and dirt all over her clothes introduced herself as Professor Sprout and showed us around Greenhouse One, telling us what plants were what and what some of them would do to us if we weren't careful. None of the plants were ones I had seen before and by the end of the lesson, I surmised that Herbology was just Extreme Gardening.

At lunch, I managed to convince the girls to let Niall sit with us, which was only fair since Lily's friend, Severus, was also sitting with us. I didn't really get a good vibe from Severus. He seemed to want Lily all to himself. But I gave him as much of a chance as I hoped they were giving Niall.

Professor McGonagall, I discovered, taught Transfiguration. Her introduction to the lesson was the most exciting one we'd seen so far. She started by calling us into the classroom. But when we entered and took out seats, the only other living thing in sight was a tabby cat with square markings around its eyes, sitting on the teacher's desk. A cat that looked oddly familiar …

When we had all sat down, the cat leaped off the desk and turned into Professor McGonagall before hitting the floor. The transformation was followed by a stunned silence and then a round of applause from the class. A small smile found its way onto her face.

'Welcome to Transfiguration. My name is Professor McGonagall and I am your teacher. This can be quite a tricky subject, but with time and hard work, you maybe be able to one day, do what I just did. But before that, you will learn to do this.' With a flick of her wand, she changed her desk into a pig and back again, the same trick she used to prove she was a witch. 'But way before that, you must learn to do this.'

She began to hand a match to each of us and explained that we would be trying to change it into a needle.

This proved to be harder than I thought.

By the end of the lesson, only Lily, Sirius and James had been able to turn their match into a needle. My match looked like just as much of a match as it did at the beginning of the lesson.

'Okay class! That is all for today! Ten points with each be awarded to Lily, James and Sirius for successfully transfiguring their match to a needle.'

There was a round of applause. James and Sirius looked proud while Lily looked bashful.

'The rest of you: homework is to keep practising. I will see all of you on Wednesday.'

The class all got up and left to go to our last class of the day, Charms.

The man who taught Charms, Professor Flitwick, was shorter than all of us and had a high-pitched voice. Just like in Transfiguration, it was just us Gryffindors in the class.

Professor Flitwick had to stand on a stack of books to see over his desk, which made a few of us giggle. It was another theory lesson. He told us we might try out a few spells in the coming weeks.

I went to post my letter after classes finished. Lily came with me while Mary, Flo and Niall went back to the common room.

Of course, it probably would have made it easier if we knew where the Owlery was.

The word "confusing" was an understatement for what the Hogwarts castle was. Not only were there that many corridors and doors, but the stairs moved, some of the portraits opened up to reveal a passageway and if you touched a wall in the right place, it would open up to a passage. As well as this, the paintings and talking suits of armour were all giving us different directions. We ended up having to sneak away from an argument between a suit of armour and three paintings, concerning which route was the fastest one to the Owlery.

'I think we are very, very lost,' Lily whispered as we walked down a particularly dark and cold corridor.

'What's this here? Are these first years I see?' A cackling voice came from behind us. I think we gave ourselves whiplash we turned so fast.

'Why so jumpy?' the ghost grinned.

He had a mischievous look in his eye and an evil smile. And he was wearing a ridiculous looking hat.

'Who are you?' I asked, quite bravely, I thought.

'The question should be, who are you and what are you ickle first years doing in these parts of the castle?'

'We're looking for the Owlery,' Lily said.

'The Owlery?' he cackled again, his eyes shining.

'Do you know how to get there from here?'

'Of course. First you have to …' he proceeded to give us a series of directions, which I had trouble remembering after the third right, but Lily seemed to have it together so I trusted she would know the way.

'Oh, and when you get there knock on the door. A weird, smelly man will answer. Tell him "_vos sunt a facie puppis_" and you'll be sure to have that letter posted.'

'Wait, what do we say?' Lily asked him, fishing in her robe pockets for a piece of parchment and a quill.

'Vos sunt a facie puppis,' the ghost repeated.

'What does that mean?' I asked, suspicious. I wasn't sure I entirely trusted this guy.

'Oh, it's just something that the students here say when they want their letter posted good and proper.'

He winked at us. I think Lily and I were still a little unsure about whether this guy was trustworthy, but the way we saw it, his directions were bound to take us somewhere other than this horrible corridor.

Just as we were walking away, we heard a deep voice bellow, 'Peeves!' and the ghost we were just talking to, his voice certainly less cheeky and confident as below call back, 'Coming sir!'

'Do you remember the way we're going?'

'Yeah. I'm always telling my mum the way around London,' Lily said cheerily.

It didn't take us too long to get there, but because we had been walking around for so long, I was just about ready to give up on sending this letter. I would see Summer at Christmas.

We knocked on the door that we assumed was the one "Peeves" was talking about.

An unfortunate looking man opened the door. He was hunched over and had zits all over his face. His nose seemed to be permanently scrunched up.

'What do you want?' He squinted at us, as if he had been sitting in a dark room for years and was only just now coming outside.

'Umm … vos sunt a facie puppis,' Lily read off her piece of parchment.

'What did you just say?' he snapped. I flinched. Lily repeated herself.

'And what does that mean?'

'Um, we were told that –' I began but was interrupted by him snatching the parchment from Lily's grasp and taking it into his dark and dank office.

'I am going to find out what this means,' he threatened, pointing his finger at it furiously. 'But now I want you out of my face! Go! Leave! It's only the first day and I've already got you vermin bothering me!

We quickly left; this man was angry and was reaching the point of madness. Plus, there were a pair of glowing eyes watching us from under the desk.

'The ghost tricked us!' Lily exclaimed, furious. 'What did those words mean? What if we get into serious trouble Seven?' Lily looked close to tears.

What _did _those words really mean?


End file.
